Backup crew

Mission parameters

• Mass: 6850 kg
• Perigee: 199 km
• Apogee: 219 km
• Inclination: 51.6°
• Period: 88.7 minutes

Mission highlights

Fifth expedition to Salyut 7

Salyut 7

Salyut 7 was a space station in low Earth orbit from April 1982 to February 1991. It was first manned in May 1982 with two crew via Soyuz T-5, and last visited in June 1986, by Soyuz T-15. Various crew and modules were used over its lifetime, including a total of 12 manned and 15 unmanned launches...

. Visited by 6th and 7th expeditions.

The three-person Mayak crew entered the darkened Salyut 7 station carrying flashlights. The cosmonauts commented on the burnt-metal odor of the drogue docking unit. By February 17, Salyut 7 was fully reactivated, and the cosmonauts had settled into a routine. Physician Oleg Atkov did household chores and monitored his own health and that of his colleagues, who conducted experiments.

During the previous year a fuel line on the station had ruptured. Kizim and Solovyov carried out three EVAs to try to fix the problem during the mission.

First Indian in space

With this mission, Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian in space. The original Soyuz T-10 capsule is displayed at Nehru Planetarium

Nehru Planetarium

There are five planetariums in India named after India's first Prime Minister, [Jawaharlal Nehru]. Nehru Plantariums are located in Mumbai, New Delhi and Bangalore and there is a Jawahar Planetarium in Allahabad. Nehru Planetarium in Pune was the first one in Asia, established in 1954...

, New Delhi

New Delhi

New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. His conversation with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi

Indira Gandhi

Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...

can be heard at the display as well.